Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Mackenzie Skapski played goal for the Abbotsford Hawks bantam team – which won a British Columbia provincial championship. He was selected by Kootenay in the third round (57th overall) of the 209 WHL Bantam Draft.

2009-10: Skapski played nine games for the Fraser Valley Bruins midget minor team in British Columbia. He was 4-3 with a 3.39 goals against. He suffered serious facial injuries when the team’s bus was involved in an accident in December 2009 and Skapski spent the rest of the season recovering.

2010-11: Skapski made a successful return from his injuries – appearing in four games with the WHL champion Kootenay Ice and representing Canada Pacific in the 2011 U17 World Hockey Challenge. He made his WHL debut with the Ice in late January and was 3-1 with a 3.16 goals against and .882 save percentage. He did not play in any playoff games or at the Memorial Cup. In four games at the WHC he had a 3.30 goals against and a .878 save percentage. Skapski spent the bulk of the season with the Ridge Meadow Flames in the Pacific Junior Ice Hockey League. He was 6-11 with 1 shutout in 21 games and had a 4.56 goals against and .890 save percentage.

2011-12: Skapski appeared in 19 games as a backup to Sabres’ prospect Nathan Lieuwen in his first full WHL season. He was 9-6-2 with a 3.12 goals against and .890 save percentage. Kootenay reached the playoffs after finishing fourth in the Central Division. Skapski did not see any action in the four-game playoff series with Edmonton. He was ranked 19th amongst North American goaltenders in Central Scouting’s final rankings but was not selected in the 2012 NHL Draft.

2012-13: Skapski took over as the starter in his second full season with Kootenay, appearing in 65 of 72 games. He was 34-25-1 with 7 shutouts and had a 2.78 goals against and .910 save percentage. Kootenay reached the WHL playoffs after finishing fifth in the Central Division. The Ice met Edmonton in the playoffs for the second straight year and in the five game series Skapski was 1-4 with a 3.95 goals against and .892 save percentage. Ranked 17th amongst North American goaltenders in Central Scouting’s final rankings, he was selected by the Rangers in the sixth round (170th overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft.

2013-14: Skapski attended his first training camp with the New York Rangers before returning to Kootenay for an overage season. Playing in 53 of 72 regular season games, he was 28-20-4 with 4 shutouts and had a 2.70 goals against and .916 save percentage. The Ice finished fourth in the Central Division and reached the second round in the playoffs. Skapski was 3-5 in 10 playoff games and had a 3.78 goals against and .882 save percentage. He signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Rangers in May 2014.

2014-15: Skapski made his NHL debut in a February 20th game against Buffalo and played for Rangers’ AHL affiliate Hartford in his first pro season. He was 2-0 with 1 shutout for the Rangers, ironically making both starts against the Sabres, and had a 0.50 goals against and .978 save percentage. Skapski was 15-8-1 with 3 shutouts and had a 3.17 goals against and .906 save percentage in 28 regular season games for Hartford. The Wolf Pack finished first in the Northeast Division and reached the Eastern Conference finals. Skapski was 0-1 in two playoff games and had a 5.43 goals against and .821 save percentage. He played one game for the ECHL’s Greenville Road Warriors and was 0-1 with a 3.17 goals against and .906 save percentage.

2015-16: Skapski had a challenging season in his second pro campaign. Slowed at the beginning of the year while recovering from off-season arthroscopic surgery to repair a labral tear in his right hip, Skapski saw limited action with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack; spending much of the season with the ECHL’s Greenville Swamp Rabbits. A late season win against Springfield in which he stopped 28 of 30 shots was his first victory for the Wolf Pack since December, raising his record to 3-6-0. Skapski had a 3.36 goals against and .893 save percentage in 11 games for Hartford. He played 27 ECHL games for the Swamp Rabbits, finishing with a record of 5-14-5 with one shutout and posted a 3.26 goals against and .901 save percentage.

Talent Analysis

With good size and excellent play down low, Skapski is poised and controlled between the pipes. He surprised most watchers with his excellent play when he made his NHL debut last year at age 20.

Future

Skapski was a feel-good story for the Rangers when he made his NHL debut as a 20-year-old but faces a huge challenge in maintaining his slot in the organization in 2016-17. Entering the third year of his original entry-level deal, Skapski has veterans Antti Raanta and Magnus Hellberg firmly entrenched ahead of him on the depth chart while first-year pro Brandon Halverson and fellow prospects Igor Shestyorkin and Adam Huska are coming up through the pipeline. He has shown the talent to be an NHL goaltender but his overall game is still developing.

Photo: Forward Anthony Duclair had a huge 2013-14 season in the QMJHL, where he managed 50 goals and 49 assists in 59 regular season games. Duclair was selected in the third round of the 2013 NHL Draft. (courtesy of Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images)

The New York Rangers have had a big turnover in their top prospects over the last few years, as more and more young players have cracked their NHL roster. Chris Kreider, who has been a top prospect since he was drafted in 2009, has graduated after being the franchise's best prospect for the last three years.

Photo: Edmonton Oil Kings goaltender and Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Tristan Jarry is leading WHL goaltenders in both goals-against average and minutes played in the 2013-14 season (courtesy of Marissa Baecker/Getty Images)

Our list of drafted goaltenders playing in the Western Hockey League includes prototypical workhorses, netminders who in most cases are tending the pipes over 80 percent of the time that their teams take the ice.

Photo: Defenseman Troy Donnay is one of four prospects representing the New York Rangers in the CHL. The 19-year-old was signed to an NHL entry-level contract during the 2013 off-season. (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

The New York Rangers currently have only four prospects playing major junior hockey. This is the lowest number of prospects assigned to the CHL in recent memory and reflects both a switch in drafting tendencies, as well as the fact the Rangers had a combined nine draft picks in 2012 and 2013.

Photo: Dylan McIlrath has gradually developed into a dependable and physical defensive defenseman. The New York Rangers selected McIlrath 10th overall in the 2010 NHL Draft. (courtesy of Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

It seems like a distant memory now, but just six or seven years ago, the New York Rangers had few homegrown players on their NHL roster. Big name free agents were the norm for this original six team, with few of the team's prospects ever appearing in more than one or two games on Broadway.

Photo: Forward Adam Tambellini was the first selection the New York Rangers made in the 2013 NHL Draft. Tambellini was selected in the third round, 65th overall. (courtesy of Jamie Squire/Getty)

There was none of the usual flurry of trade activity at the New York Rangers table during the 2013 NHL Draft. The Rangers went into the draft with only five mid-to late-round selections, and while New York would have loved to move up into the top two rounds, the asking price was too high.